During various downhole operations, the drill string or other downhole tubular members may stretch over time due to various stresses. For example, a drill string, which may comprise many segments of drill pipe strung end to end, will typically stretch under its own weight. Since depth measurements are routinely based on pipe tallies, the stretching of the pipe can result in depth measurement errors. A pipe tally is a list containing details of tubulars that have been prepared for running or that have been retrieved from the wellbore. Each tubing joint is numbered and the corresponding length and other pertinent details noted alongside. However, after stretching has occurred, operational decisions made based upon these tally-based measurements will also be erroneous. In the era of multilateral wells in ultra-deep drilling, accurate depth measurements are vitally important because an incorrect measurement could well result in damage to nearby wells.